What happened to the cast of Friday Night Lights? From 'toxic' feuds to Oscar glory and why the stars ruled out a movie - as series turns 20

It's been two decades since the world was introduced to the Dillon Panthers, a high school football team striving to become the best in their rural town of Dillon, Texas. 

Starring the likes of Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton, Friday Night Lights (FNL) was critically acclaimed and developed a cult following during its five-season run. 

Last month, the series was the highest-ranked sports-related programme on The New York Times' list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, making it to 14th place. 

Over the years there have been calls for reboots, spin-offs and even a movie, with fans desperate to know what became of the residents of Dillon. 

As for the stars of the show, many have gone on to become household names, with the likes of Jesse Plemons and Michael B Jordan becoming the toast of Hollywood. 

As the series marks its 20th anniversary this year, the Daily Mail reveals what became of the cast of FNL.  

Kyle Chandler – Coach Eric Taylor

As a member of a state championship football team in his schooldays, it seemed fitting that Kyle Chandler take on the role of Coach Eric Taylor.

His role as the firm but fair coach earned Kyle plenty of praise, as well as an Emmy Award for Lead Actor in 2011.

While shooting the series, Kyle took on film work, appearing in The Kingdom and The Day the Earth Stood Still. 

When FNL ended, Kyle threw his focus into film work and landed roles in Super 8, Argo and Zero Dark Thirty among others. 

He revealed that he was offered a chance to reprise his role in a FNL movie, but he was quick to turn it down because the series already had a 'perfect' ending. 

He explained: 'We all did a great job together. It was just once in a lifetime, period.' 

Kyle returned to the small screen with his role in the Netflix series Bloodline, for which he received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations.

Most recently he was cast as Hal Jordan / Green Lantern in the DC Universe TV series Lanterns. 

Kyle also serves as a volunteer firefighter in his spare time, and worked up to 24 hours a week at a local firehouse while filming FNL without telling the cast or crew.

He married Kathryn Macquarrie in 1995 after meeting at a dog park and the couple have two daughters. 

Eldest child Sydney has followed in Kyle's footsteps and has landed roles on Hulu series Pistol and Alien: Earth, while Sawyer has inherited Kyle's philanthropy and the pair have been active in trying to end the practice of shark finning.

Connie Britton – Tami Taylor

Prior to NFL, Connie Britton had already built up a fanbase with her work in Spin City, The West Wing and 24. 

Yet she gained an even larger fanbase after taking on the role of Coach Taylor's wife, Tami, the school guidance counselor who would look out for all the students. 

Eric and Tami's relationship was beloved by fans, and Connie later revealed that she and Kyle told the show's writers they would refuse to participate in an affair storyline.

She explained: 'What we thought would be really interesting and what we thought this would be the perfect format for on the show was to actually show what most couples go through which is just trying to be partners to each other and get through the day.' 

After FNL ended, Connie went on to star in the inaugural series of American Horror Story: Murder House, as well as the likes of Dirty John and The White Lotus. 

Connie also famously starred as country music star Rayna James in Nashville. 

In August, Connie was left devastated by the death of her Nashville co-star Hayden Panettiere, describing her as 'bursting with brilliance, shining so bright'. 

She added: 'I have no words for this sad song. Just heartbreak. I love you girl. Sleep easy now.'

Connie, who is an advocate for women's rights and served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme, adopted son Yoby from Ethiopia in 2011 and juggled her busy career as a single mother.

She is now engaged to producer David Windsor after the pair started dating in 2019.

Connie was previously married to investment banker, and her college boyfriend, John Britton from 1991 until 1995. 

Aimeé Teegarden – Julie Taylor

Aimeé Teegarden was just 16 when she landed the role of Eric and Tami's rebellious daughter Julie Taylor. 

She went on to appear in shows such as 90210, Legend of the Seeker and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

Aimee also landed a role in Wes Craven's Scream 4, playing horror-loving high schooler, Jenny Randall.

She has also appeared in several music videos through her work as a model. 

Aimeé previously reflected on her time in FNL, telling Nylon: 'That show was just, it’s alchemy. It’s everything happening when it needs to happen, and the right pieces sort of fall together. 

'And Kyle Chandler, I remember, he used to say to us, "You kids, you have no idea how good you have it. You have no idea". 

'So I think, at the time, we all kind of just really tried to enjoy it as much as possible, and it was just such a special show, and it was an amazing time in my life.'

Scott Porter – Jason Street

FNL proved to be a career-defining moment for Scott Porter, after he landed the role of football player Jason Street, who suffers an in-game spinal injury that ends his football career.

After winning a legion of fans with his role, he was then cast as  George Tucker in The CW series Hart of Dixie and as Mayor Paul Randolph in the Netflix series Ginny & Georgia.

He also works as a voice actor, lending his voice to various projects based on comic books. These include Marvel Anime, Harley Quinn, Batman: Arkham Knight, The Walking Dead: Season Two and Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series.

In 2024, Scott competed in season 11 of The Masked Singer as Gumball. He finished in second place, behind Vanessa Hudgens as Goldfish, with the pair previously working together on the 2009 film Bandslam.

Yet FNL not only had a positive impact on his career but personal life, because he met his wife Kelsey on the set. 

At the time, Kelsey was a cheerleader at the University Of Texas at Austin and the pair dated for four years before they tied the knot.

They are parents to son McCoy and daughter Clover.

Minka Kelly – Lyla Garrity

Minka Kelly also found fame through FNL, playing Scott's girlfriend Lyla Garrity. 

The role was a lifeline for Minka, who opened up about her turbulent upbringing in her memoir. 

She revealed that she was involved in an abusive relationship aged 17, and claimed her then-boyfriend coerced her into making a sex tape, with the star later falling pregnant.

Minka explained that she moved in with her high school boyfriend and his family after her mother Maureen – who died in 2008 – left their hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico to avoid a potential drug bust.

When her mother returned, Minka said the pair went to Planned Parenthood where she terminated the pregnancy. 

Yet despite her troubled upbringing she was determined to fulfil her dreams of becoming an actress, with FNL proving to be her breakthrough role. 

She went on to land parts in 500 Days of Summer, Parenthood, and the ABC action series revival of Charlie's Angels. 

However, while FNL was a career highlight, it was also a tense time for Minka, owing to her 'toxic' relationship with co-star Taylor Kitsch.

In her memoir she explained that their on-off relationship not only affected her, but also her interactions with other cast members on set of the hit NBC series.

'All the effort I might have invested in connecting consistently with the girls on the show went to Taylor,' she penned. 'So when my relationship with Taylor became toxic, I had no one to turn to.' 

The star, who is dating Imagine Dragons singer Dan Reynolds, added: 'Life became very difficult both on and off set whenever we broke up. We were young and had very few tools to handle our emotions and personal grievances.'

Minka then opened up what days had been like on set of FNL when they were not dating. 'On the days we had to work together and were broken up, he didn’t want to be in the hair and makeup trailer at the same time I was.'

'We couldn’t ride in the van together from base camp to set for the same reason,' the Titans star wrote in her memoir, detailing that 'tensions' were 'high' on days such as those, and that, 'everyone felt the awkwardness'.

Minka continued:  'I’d show up to work with a smile on my face thinking I was being professional, while everyone else felt sorry for the guy whose heart had just been broken.

'My co-workers weren’t taking me out for drinks after work to mend my broken heart, they were taking him out.'

Minka starred on the series for the first three seasons, and only briefly appeared in the fourth season. Taylor, on the other hand, remained on the series for five seasons.

Taylor Kitsch – Tim Riggins

Taylor Kitsch's breakout role in FNL saw him play womanising full-back Tim Riggins, a role the fans loved to hate. 

Before landing the role, Taylor was struggling to make ends meet while trying to land acting and modelling jobs, sometimes forced to sleep on the subway in New York. 

But all that changed when he landed FNL, as he explained: 'People, for some reason or another, just really gravitated to Riggins.

'That, obviously, was the springboard to the career, and I lived in Texas for 15 more years after the show, so it truly affected my life and all for the better.'

Taylor went on to land roles in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, John Carter and 21 Bridges, and he starred in the second season of the HBO series True Detective. 

There have been rumours swirling of a FNL reboot for years, and when pressed on it last year, Taylor revealed: 'I know I've been asked, and we'll leave it at that...

'I would come in and do something - maybe for an episode or something. But I don't want to go and do the whole thing.'

For now, Taylor is focusing on opening a nature retreat on his land in Bozeman, Montana to honour his sister Shelby's sobriety. 

Taylor took two years off work in the 2010s to help his younger sibling beat her addiction to opioids and other drugs.

Shelby went on to serve as his adviser when he played opioid addict Glen Kryger on the 2023 Netflix drama Painkiller. 

'I didn’t even know sober escapes existed until I had the crash course with my sis,' Taylor explained: 'I was like, "Man, it sounds incredible to offer people a chance to reconnect in nature and slow things down".

'Probably the proudest thing I've done in my life is sticking with her and being a part of the way it's turned out.'

Zach Gilford – Matt Saracen

Playing the shy and retiring footballer Matt Saracen earned Zach Gilford a legion of fans, with the actor going on to feature in Taylor Swift's 2011 music video for Ours.

Zach also landed roles in Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club, and The Fall of the House of Usher.

'It was an iconic show and a great role,' he said of his time on FNL. 'We all have a role that people always know us for, and I'm really lucky to have that one. And I've been really lucky to do a lot of different stuff since.'

In 2010, Zach filmed TV movie Matadors and quickly began dating his co-star Kiele Sanchez. They tied the knot two years later and both featured in The Purge: Anarchy. 

Kiele announced that they were expecting their first child in August 2015 but two months later she tragically lost the baby. 

The couple went on to welcome a daughter via surrogacy in 2017 and a son born in June 2021.

Zach filed for divorce from his wife last April. 

Jesse Plemons – Landry Clarke

He began working from the age of three when he landed a Coca Cola advert, yet it was his role as the lovable goofball Landry Clarke on FNL that proved to be Jesse Plemons' breakthrough. 

Since then his career has gone from strength to strength, landing roles in Breaking Bad, Black Mirror and Fargo – where he met his wife, Kirsten Dunst. 

The couple share sons Ennis, eight, and James, five. 

Jesse has also taken on many film roles, with his 2024 movie, Kinds of Kindness, earning him the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor. 

Jesse was nominated for an Academy Award for his roles in 2021's The Power of the Dog. While 2025's Bugonia saw him nominated for a BAFTA, Actor Award and Golden Globe.

Earlier this year, the Internet playfully awarded him the trophy for Best Teammate when he missed out on the Actor Award to his FNL castmate, Michael B Jordan.

The pair were both up for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role at the 2026 Actor Awards, an honor that ultimately went to the Sinners star. 

But it was clear there was no ill will towards Jesse, who stood to applaud Michael's win. 

Derek Phillips – Billy Riggins 

Derek Phillips played Tim's older brother and legal guardian Billy Riggins on FNL.

Before taking on the role, Derek performed in regional theatre and also had small parts in Guiding Light, As the World Turns, and All My Children. 

When FNL ended, he went on to voice characters in video games such as Dishonored, Aliens, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and The Walking Dead: Michonne. 

He also voiced Jerry Anderson in the video game The Last of Us Part II, and currently voices Heron on the Netflix animated series Blood of Zeus.

While Derek's acting roles have slowed down, he still remembers his time on FNL fondly, and hosted the show's rewatch podcast Clear Eyes, Full Hearts with Stacey Oristano, who played Mindy Collette-Riggins in the show. 

Gaius Charles – Brian 'Smash' Williams

Gaius Charles found fame playing star running back Smash Williams for three seasons on FNL. 

After the series ended he took a break from acting to pursue a Master of Arts degree in Religious Studies from Drew University. 

During his studies, he traveled to India to study the world’s religions and to Uganda, where he preached at a local church and raised funds for a youth conference focused on HIV/Aids awareness.

After graduating, Charles returned to acting and joined the cast of Grey's Anatomy as medical intern Shane Ross.

He has also starred in the TV adaptation of Taken,  Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Law & Order: SVU.

Most recently he featured in The Walking Dead: Dead City.

Adrianne Palicki – Tyra Collette

After a handful of small roles on other shows, Adrianne Palicki landed the role of school It Girl, Tyra Collette, featuring as a series regular for the first three seasons. 

Speaking about the job, Adrianne shared: 'Before [FNL], anything where you had to be wearing a bathing suit, I was pretty much put in. 

'I appreciated the work at the time, but when Peter Berg came in and Linda Loewy and really, honestly believed in me and that I was more than that, it genuinely opened up doors that I never thought I'd be walking through. 

'And I didn't know that I was going to be walking into the most amazing acting experience of my life.'

After FNL, Adrianne landed the roles of Bobbi Morse in the ABC series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and as Commander Kelly Grayson in the Fox/Hulu series The Orville. 

She has also appeared in films Red Dawn, G.I. Joe: Retaliation and John Wick.

Michael B Jordan – Vince Howard 

When Michael B Jordan landed his role as quarterback Vince Howard in FNL it gave him the career boost he needed. 

The actor got his break playing Wallace in the first season of the crime drama series The Wire in 2002. 

However, once he left the show he panicked that he wouldn't be able to find work again. Thankfully he got a lifeline with FNL – joining the cast in the fourth season. 

Speaking about his time on FNL, Michael explained: 'It opened up so many doors because all the right people loved that show: fans to producers to casting directors.

'It definitely helped out and created warm environments for me to walk in and leave a good impression.'

Michael made his film breakout as Oscar Grant in Fruitvale Station, and earned further acclaim for his performance in Ryan Coogler's subsequent films, including Creed and Black Panther. 

In 2020 he was ranked 15th on The New York Times list of the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century.

Yet it was his work on Ryan's latest film that proved to be life-changing, with Michael taking home the Best Actor Oscar this year for his role in Sinners. 

The horror film was a commercial and critical success, breaking the record for the most nominated film at the Oscars.  

Sinners stormed this year's Academy Awards with 16 nominations, surpassing the previous record of 14 shared by All About Eve, Titanic and La La Land.

Matt Lauria – Luke Cafferty

Matt Lauria played running back Luke Cafferty in FNL, his first starring role after previously appearing in NBC's Lipstick Jungle. 

He said of the show: 'For me, [FNL] was such an honor to work on. The incredible writing, the shooting schedule, the efficiency with which the unbelievably talented crew made it so singular in tone and style and feel, and the talent of the other actors I worked with.'

After filming wrapped he moved to Chicago to work on Fox crime drama The Chicago Code, but it was cancelled after one season. 

Matt then reunited with FNL showrunner Jason Katims when he landed a recurring role in the NBC family drama Parenthood. 

He currently stars in Sheriff Country, a police drama investigating the criminal activity in Edgewater County, California, that also stars Morena Baccarin. 

An avid electric guitarist, Matt has been married to musician Michelle Armstrong for 20 years. 

Jurnee Smollett – Jess Merriweather

Jurnee Smollett began her career as a child actress appearing on television sitcoms such as On Our Own and Full House. 

She joined FNL as Jess Merriweather, an East Dillon student who shows aspirations of being a football coach but struggles with her chaotic home life. 

Jurnee went on to land roles in shows such as The Defenders, True Blood and Lovecraft Country, receiving a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for the latter.

She's also appeared in films such as The Great Debaters, Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor and Birds of Prey.

Yet Jurnee is open to the idea of a FNL reboot, saying last year: '[I’d appear] in a heartbeat. I love [showrunner] Jason Katims, so if I were invited to, it would be an honor. I’d do anything with [him]. He's phenomenal.'

Jurnee, who is an HIV/Aids activist, shares son Hunter, nine, with her ex-husband, musician Josiah Bell. 

She is the fourth of six siblings, all of whom are performers. Notable members include younger brothers Jake – a cooking influencer – and Jussie, who found fame on Empire. 

Jussie made global headlines when he was  jailed in 2022 for staging an anti-gay, racist hate crime on himself and filing a false police report in January 2019.

Speaking in 2020, Jurnee stated: 'I love my brother and I believe my brother.' 

She added: 'It's been f***ing painful, one of the most painful things my family's ever experienced. 

'To love someone as much as we love my brother, and to watch someone who you love that much go through something like this, that is so public, has been devastating.'

Grey Damon – Hastings Ruckle 

Grey Damon joined the show in its fifth and final season playing Hastings Ruckle, a basketball player turned football player, who serves as a receiver for the Lions.

Yet despite being a late addition to the cast, Grey said he felt incredibly welcomed by the others, stating: 'They were all very hospitable and welcoming I'm the luckiest guy I know when it comes to working with great people.' 

One problem he did have, however, was the lack of character development he was given because the show was coming to an end.  

 'My character kind of got cut short because we didn't know the show was going to stop,' Grey explained. 'They had big plans, but when it came down to it, we had to wrap up all the previous cast.'

After FNL, Grey went on to appear in the likes of The Secret Circle, American Horror Story: Coven, and The Flash. 

He also had a recurring role in Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Station 19.